Junior High Best Practices/Depth vs. Breadth

[Connections]

What are the most valuable things you did in grades 7 and 8 (or things that you wish you would have done) to prepare your student for high school?

 

Also, I know the hive has discussed depth versus breadth before but I was wondering if you had specific thoughts on this question as it relates to the junior high years. Do the final two years leading up to high school color the depth versus breadth question uniquely?

 

Thanks for sharing,

 

 

 

 

 

[Kareni]

In an older thread on a related topic, I wrote:

 

"Twelve years old was my daughter's age when we started homeschooling in 7th grade. If I were to turn back time, there would be a couple of things I would try to add in to the homeschooling mix -- for example, penmanship and world geography. However, if I were to have added those in, perhaps a couple of other things would have been neglected. All in all, I'm pleased with the outcome of our homeschooling ... and proud of what my daughter has accomplished since then."
 

Here's that older thread.  It also includes links to other threads of interest.

 

If You Could Turn Back Time to When Your Child Was 12 ....

 

Regards,

Kareni

 

[Connections]

Thanks so much for the post and the links! I tried to search for something similar but came up empty!

[Sarah CB]

Well, out here junior high is grades 7 - 9.  I already have one in university and I've got one in grade 8 this year.  I've spent the last couple of weeks mulling over the next few years.  With dd, I was unprepared for the amount of science she wanted to do.  In our province, kids need Science 10 and one Science 11 (either biology, physics, or chemistry) to graduate.  However, she wanted to have three grade 11 sciences, 2 grade 12 sciences and calculus 12 (in addition to pre-calc 10, 11, and 12).  

 

I'm a history/lit girl.

 

Ds (13) is also pretty jazzed up about science, but I'm not on this boat alone.  I'm rallying my friends so that we continue to have a great group of kids to work together.  This is our fourth year working together.  The grade 8's are all ahead.  So much so, that next year they'll complete science 10 and they won't have any social studies they have to do.  We're all doing Tapestry of Grace and it looks like we'll take a year off between Year 3 and Year 4.  During this "gap year" we're going to give the kids lots of time to design their own projects - together.  I'm really looking forward to the idea that they'll have lots of time to figure out what they want to pursue and how they want it to look.  We'll help them set up a framework for their learning, but what they want to learn about and what their end product looks like will be up to them.  We could barrel ahead, but I think there will be some real value in giving them a year to do their own thing.  

 

Dd enjoyed learning, but really had her eye on graduation.  She didn't want to take any rabbit trails or do any big projects, she just wanted to finish.  I think part of it had to do with the lack of a peer group.  The boys have a great peer group of academically motivated, creative kids.  I think they're going to have a fantastic year together.

 

[Julie in MN]

I think I'd vote for breadth in jr. hi, trying a lot of things, dropping them if they aren't of interest -- logic, shop, sewing, science kits, programming, reading literature together, book club, do something on facts-o-life or Preparing for Adolescence, start a bank account, take field trips, attend the orchestra, try some foreign languages, learn more about your faith, whatever sounds good.  If you have a science kid like Sarah's, have a weekly science day, or visit some science jobs.  Show your child that homeschool means lots of different opportunities each year.  Then you can do some depth in high school.

 

I would still make sure you're stepping up the depth in some area or other, with an occasional heavier book to read, longer time spent on math, etc., so high school isn't a shock.   And I'd try to locate any writing weaknesses and really focus on them, with writing in some area almost every day.  I guess math and reading/writing are my only obsessive subjects; the rest seem somewhat optional in jr. hi, though they can be great if you find something interesting or something needing work.

 

But I'd have some fun together, too.  Those are some hard years for kids and I think it's worth developing the relationship by making homeschool something better than group school.

[SandyKC]

I'm with Amateur Bee Keeper in voting for breadth at this level.  I think exploring broadly helps your child find what he's passionate about and then throughout the high school years he can focus on building great skills in the particular areas of interest.. Whether they are in sports, the arts, or any specific area of scientific study. 

 

Academically, I think it's a good time to really focus on quality academic skills --especially written expression.  Given a child who is advanced, if he takes joint enrollment courses in high school, having the ability to write a great essay is one of the most essential skills for doing well in those college courses.  Thus, we worked heavily on spelling (self-correction), editing, and writing a well-structured paper throughout 7th and 8th grades. 

 

Math fluency is essential too, so if a child has any difficulty working with the math facts, it's a great time to have your child play a math-based game daily to develop those fluency skills, and to work on building the skill of working with word problems.  Since higher level math becomes more problem-oriented as time goes on, being able to pick out the factors in a problem, set it up, and solve it become more critical as skills.

 

I think it's really easy to feel like we should be really working on advancing knowledge, but fluency with basic skills of reading, writing, and math can equip a child to do well in any higher-level class.  Thus, solidifying the core academics before high school can go a long way in helping high school be an advanced learning experience.

[saraha]

I've got nothing valuable to add, just wanted to post so I can find this thread later when I have more time.

[Lori D.]

Here are some super past threads on that topic:

 

In case you are interested, here are past threads of a very similar topic:

Looking back
If you knew then what you know now
High school parents: what would be your ideal for 7th/8th grade?
From moms who have graduated their seniors or are close to graduation

If you could turn time back to when your child was 12...

To all you people with 8th graders (or there abouts)

 

 

Below is a "replay" of my response from one of those threads. The only things I would add (for BOTH middle school AND high school):

 

- School hard and well for 5-6 hours, then STOP.

No homework. No working in the evenings or weekends. Give yourself and your student time to recharge, time to pursue and develop personal interests. Take time to nap, fiddle with hobbies, and CELEBRATE regularly. Make memories. Model to your student how to live a life in BALANCE.

 

- Discuss -- be flexible, follow bunny trails, take advantage of spontaneous conversation.

Slowly make it a habit in middle school, so you encourage deep thinking in high school, and open communications all throughout life. I DON'T mean turn everything into a learning opportunity. Rather, realize that all of the best discussions, all of the really meaningful real-life conversations, came in the car while commuting, or at dinner, or after watching a movie/TV show. Just enjoy hearing your students' thoughts; ask questions; learn to really listen!

 

- Make a conscious effort to stop and CELEBRATE every so often.

Once a month, set school aside and go enjoy making memories together -- a hike; a trip to the beach; go watch a first run movie at the first showing of the day; go out to lunch or all together cook a fancy dinner and dress up for it, light candles, and use the fancy china.

 

- Schedule time for a family project that takes you all semester or year to complete.

Make it something that both student and parent will enjoy doing, that will give you something larger than yourselves, with the opportunity to fail and learn from the mistakes; something that gives you time to talk while you work; something that challenges YOU and helps you model for your student how to handle hard things, things you don't always know the answer to, things you may fail at and have to try a number of times before it works... Put in a garden. Build a boat and try it out. Construct an exhibit for a children's museum. Sew a quilt together and donate it to a homeless shelter or battered woman's shelter...

 

BEST of luck as you move towards a new phase of life! Warmest regards, Lori D.

 

 

"I feel GOOD about what we did to prepare for high school! A few things I am SO glad we did in those middle school years:

1. Took time out of the schedule to try out all kinds of fun odds and ends.
(in high school, just don't have the time any more)

2. Took a break from history and did a year of world culture/geography and comparative religions.
(SO helpful going into high school with an understanding of worldviews, and of other, especially NON-WESTERN peoples, for when you start your history cycle for high school)

3. Got involved with a great homeschool group with a lot of gr. 6-12 students.
(For social interaction, but also the older students draw the younger ones toward maturity, set good examples, etc.)

4. Did NOT push and make 8th grade like high school.
(You've got 4 years to do high school, and 8th grade is your last chance to be more relaxed, focus on nailing down the "basics", really develop good patterns of taking time to do things as a family)

5. Spent time doing critical thinking and logic stuff

(Dandylion logic series; Fallacy Detective; Thinking Toolbox; Critical Thinking in Images, Logic, Patterns; etc -- really helped "set the stage" for high school for going into analyzing Literature and film; learning about worldview; discuss/debate; etc.)

Could we have done *more* or *better* things? -- Sure! But I have no regrets, as I did the best I could at the time, considering life circumstances, the children's level of maturity/development and attitudes, and what material was available to me. Looking back, I see the middle school and high school years as one lovely stretch of time in which I've really had the privilege and opportunity to develop wonderful"relationships with each of our DSs. :)"

[TechWife]

I suggest breadth as well.  As you enter high school, much of what she studies will be determined by college entrance requirements and this may be the best chance for her to explore a variety of areas. 

 

I'd work hard on study skills and life skills - things that she might not have time to concentrate on in high school. Specific things that come to mind are: learning how to schedule time spent on various activities and classes, doing laundry, cooking basic meals, how to study for different types of tests, how to organize her schoolwork so that she can concentrate on learning, not finding things. Social skills like making sure she can handle meeting new people and age appropriate small talk, ordering her own food at restaurants, dressing appropriately for the occasion (just do this as things come up, really), body language, appropriate boundaries with people. If you're a Christian, this is a great time to do a Bible Study of some sort with her. 

 

Academically, make sure she knows the basics well - at least ready for Alg. 1 when she enters 9th grade, able to write solid, short reports. Of course, if she has any LD's, these goals very well may be different for her, so don't sweat that if that's the case. 

 

 

[PeterPan]

Best things?  Learning to type (finally, had to switch to Dvorak!) and getting evals.  None of the rest really mattered a plug nickel.

 

Breadth vs. depth for those years?  Junior high go wide, high school go deep.  But whatever, it's really a function of the kid.  I've got the one who decided to spend a whole year (actually she wants two) on the Holocaust.  I'm giving it to her, because some kids are the kind you impose education on and others are the kind you get out of the way of.

[SandyKC]

some kids are the kind you impose education on and others are the kind you get out of the way of.

 

LOVE THAT!! It is PERFECT and right on the mark.  I always say my oldest has an insatiable desire "to know," where he would look things up all of the time, study, and connect the dots between topics just because he wants to know... He makes the PERFECT kind of unschooler having studied astronomy, Greek mythology, chemistry, etc. all just because he wanted to know.  With him.. I'd feed him curricula, but he'd go off on tangents of all kinds so the key there was to just get out of the way! ;-)